In a recent report, it was disclosed that the Federal Government of the United States now holds approximately $5 billion worth of Bitcoin (BTC).
The Wall Street Journal reported that the U.S. government has become one of the world’s largest Bitcoin holders after seizing over 200,000 Bitcoins in three recent operations.
Well-known Chinese journalist Colin Wu took to X (formerly known as Twitter) today to announce the United States’ acquisition of the most valuable cryptocurrency by market capitalization. These confiscated bitcoins were predominantly linked to cyber criminals and transactions on the darknet. They were stored in encrypted hardware wallets under the ownership of various government agencies, including the U.S. Treasury, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), and the Justice Department.
It’s worth noting that the process of converting these seized bitcoins into government assets may extend over several years. Although the addition of these bitcoins has increased the government’s overall holdings, they are not immediately under the United States’ ownership.
The federal government is currently awaiting a final forfeiture order from the court, which would grant it full legal ownership of these seized assets. This order would pave the way for the U.S. Marshals Service, the agency responsible for selling assets seized by the federal government, to liquidate the bitcoins.
The U.S. government’s growing Bitcoin reserves have sparked questions regarding its regulatory stance on cryptocurrencies. Despite the ongoing regulatory uncertainty surrounding the U.S. crypto market, characterized by inconvenient and incomplete crypto regulations, the government has taken steps to introduce regulatory measures, such as the implementation of Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) policies.
The U.S. government has increasingly relied on intelligence and surveillance operations to track and seize assets obtained illegally. Crypto enthusiasts and investors are closely monitoring how these recent seizures will impact the cryptocurrency’s value.